High pressure automatic lubricating system



Jan. 1, 1935. M. cozY 1,986,390

HIGH I RESSURE AUTOMATIC LUBRICATING SYSTEM Filed Dec. 22, 1928 INVENTOR ffz'clz'ael Cozy A'ITORNEY Patented Jan. 1, 1935 HIGH PRESSUREAUTOMATIC V i a SYSTEM LUBRIGATING Michael Cozy. Waterbury, Conn; assignor to Auto Research Corporation, Dover, Del, a cor-.-

poration of. Delaware Application December 22, 1928, Serial No. 227,992

I 2Claims. (c1'. 1,s4+7) This invention relates to an apparatus for pcriodically feeding lubricant, and more particularly to a lubricating apparatus employing a thermal pump adapted to be operated by the heating upof an internal combustion engine each time the latter is used.

One object of this invention is to provide an apparatus of theabove nature which will automatically lubricate various portions .of a motor vehicle, such as shackle bolts, brake mechanism,

clutch mechanism, steeringmechanism, motor supports, etc.

.A further object is .tozprovide an apparatus of this nature which will be simple in construction and operation, inexpensive to manufacture, easy to install, compact, and very efiicient and do.- rable in use. q v 7 j With the above and other objects in viewthe invention consists the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinafter more fully described, illustrated and claimed.

A preferred and practicalembodiment of the invention is shown'in the accompanying drawing in which the'figure is a vertical sectional view of one form of apparatus embodying this invention.

As has been stated above, it is an object of this invention to provide an apparatus of an automatic nature which will periodically feed lubricant to any desired portions of a motor vehicle or other type of machine, and as herein disclosed, said apparatus is operated by heat generated in an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle.

Referring now to the drawing in which like reference characters denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, A represents an overhead reservoir or tank for containing a supply of lubricant which may be either of a heavy or light character as desired. Associated with the tank A is a lower chamber B which consti- 'tutes a thermal pump. The chamber B is adapted to periodically receive oil from the supply tank A and deliver it to lubricating points.

Any suitable means may be employed for heating the chamber B, but as herein disclosed, said chamber is located in heat exchange relation with respect to an exhaust pipe 19 of an internal combustion engine. The tank A is connected to the chamber B by means of a connector member C, having suitable oil passages as shown, and being i provided with a discharge conduit D for conveying the lubricant pumped from the chamber A to the lubricating points, not shown.

The storage tank A may be of any desired twice a year.

shape or size, but in the preferred embodiment of the inventiongsaid tank should have 2. capacity sufiicient to relieve the operator of the necessity of replenishing the same more than upon its top adapted to be closed by a cap 6 which is formed with a breather opening 7. A leak preventing gasket8 may be interposed between the top of the neck 5 and the under face ofthecap6.

'The lower wall 9 of the supply tank isprovided witha central opening 10 having a dependent flange 11 internally screw threaded at 12 for the purpose of receiving the connector member C "which is exteriorly screw threaded at its upper end 13. The lower end of the connector member Cis externally screw threaded at 14 for the purposeof being connected to an interiorly threaded flange 15 surrounding an opening 16 in the upper wall 17 of the pump chamber B. The chamber B may be of any desired size and shape but is illustrated in the figure as being generally a square lsshaped in vertical section.

For the purpose of increasing the heat transferred to the contents of the pump chamber B from the exhaust pipe 19, the bottom wall 18 of said chamber is upwardly recessed at 20 in such a manner as to snugly fit over the top of the exhaust pipe 19 previously described.

In order to permit the lubricant to fiow from the supply tank A to the pump chamber B, the connector member C has an S-shaped duct 21 provided at its central portion with an enlarged chamber 22 having at its lower end a valve seat 23 for a ball valve 24. The upper end of the enlarged chamber 22 is internally screw threaded for the purpose of receiving a screw plug 25, the removal of which will permit the ball valve 24 to be upwardly withdrawn from the chamber 22.

The connector member C is further povided with an upwardly extending valve pocket 26 which opens downwadly into the pump chamber B and has mounted in its lower end the upper exteriorly screw threaded shank 27 of a pipe 28. The pipe 28 depends into the pump chamber B and terminates at a point near the lower wall 18 thereof. A ball valve 29 is positioned within the valve pocket 26 and is adapted to fall by gravity upon a seat 30 formed on the upper end of the pipe 28.

The discharge conduit D is threaded into an opening 31 formed in the side of the connector member D, said opening communicating at its inner end with the valve pocket 26.

In operation, lubricant will be placed within the supply tank A so that the latter will be filled to Thisitank A has a filler neck 5 approximately the level illustrated. When heat is applied to the pump chamber B, as by means of the exhaust gases passing through the pipe 19, the lubricant within the pump chamber B will be caused to expand. The expansion of the lubricant within the chamber B will then cause a certain amount of the same to be forced upwardly automatically and under high pressure through the bore of the pipe 28 unseating the valve "29 and entering the valve pocket 26 from which it flows through the discharge conduit D to the lubricating points. removed from the chamber B, as when the engine is stopped, the lubricant within the chamber B will cool and naturally will contract. contraction of the lubricant will permit the valve29'to return to its seat and a vacuum will be created in the S-shaped duct 21 to be lifted from its seat and sucking down a sufficient amount of lubricant from thesupply tank A to replenish the chamber 3 and destroy the vacuum. After the vacuum has been destroyed, the ball valve 23 will return to its seat. Y

It will be understood that when the thermal pump B receives heat from the exhaust pipe 19, it will require aconsiderable period of operation .of the engine before the lubricant within-the chamber B is heatedsufficiently so that its expan'- sion will force a portion of the lubricant to bedischarged from the chamber B. Under ordinary conditions lubricant will be discharged when the chamber reaches a temperature of approximately '10 degrees and the chamber B will be replenished when the temperature-falls to approximate- 1y 'degreesF'. The arrangement and construction .of.iparts,.however, will be :so chosen that very short runs of an engine will not cause it to function. I

Without further descriptioirit is thought that the featuresand advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art and it will of course be understood that changes in the form, proportion andminor'd'etails of con- When the source :of heat is struction may be resorted to without departing from the spirit of the invention and scope of the appended claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new, and for which it is desired to secure Letters Patent, is: I

1. A central chassis lubricating installation in eluding a pressure source and branched distributing piping leading to thec'hassisbearings to be lubricated, said pressure source including a cylindrical member having an upper chamber and 'alower chamber, a central partitioning member i'between said upper chamber and said lower chamber, said central partitioning member being provided with a passageway conducting lubricant from saidlupper chamber to said lower chamber, said passageway having a check valve opening to permit flow from the upper chamber to the lower chamber and said central partitioning member also provided with an outlet including a check valve to said branched distributing piping and meansvfor heating the lubricant in the lower vchamber to cause expansion thereof through said outlet including a conduit for receiving a' heating iiuid saidi lower chamber being provided with a a 'dr i'cal chamber, a lower cylindrical chamber and a central connecting nipple, said ,nippleha-Ving a connecting passageway between the upper chamber and thelowerchamberjandan outlet from the l'owerfcliambe'r to'the piping, said nipple also contamingsepa'rat'valve controls for said passageway and said outlet, and meansfor heating the lubricantgin the'lower chamber to cause expansionthereof through said-outlet including a conduit for receiving aheating fluid; said lower chamber being provided with :a'rec'ess to, receive said conduit; 1 

